Saturday, 30 May 2015

Big Supper in Little Pancake!

As
simple as this dish is... As simple as it looks and sounds... It truly
was one of the best Asian-influenced meals I have ever made... Or eaten,
for that matter!

Just a simple pancake with a spinach
filling... But not just any old pancake and not just any old spinach!
Read on and find out, how easy it is to making something that is so
tasty it will be a case of love at first bite!

Thankfully,
when I discovered this wonderful "water spinach" at Mrs Wongs stand at
the market hall today, her assistant immediately began to explain to me
how he likes to prepare it the most- a Vietnamese method involving
shrimp paste, which I fortunately already had at home and bean sprouts,
which I took home with me.

It also called for garlic, which I
replaced by wonderful Chinese chives, which I also "discovered" for the
first time today. I was told that their flavor lies between regular
chives and ramps... And thought they sounded perfect for the little plan
that was beginning to form at the back of my head...

And yes... I can tell you in retrospect that they turned out to be perfect indeed!

So,
for my nice, big pancake, I needed 1 bunch of water spinach (which you
should be able to find at your local Asian market), 1 shallot, 1 egg, 1
chili pepper, 2 handfuls of bean sprouts, 1 teaspoon of shrimp paste, a
little fresh ginger and a little pepper, Thai fish sauce, sesame oil and
hoisin sauce for seasoning. And a sprinkle of sesame seeds... Just
because...

They
are simple ingredients, but it is the combination of all of their great
flavors together that is so delicious and satisfying. It caught me by
surprise how incredibly tasty this turned out to be... I am pretty sure
it will be the same for all of you!

I
cut the chili into slices... How much and whether you leave or remove
the seeds depends on how hot and spicy it is and of course on your own
preference! The shallot in slices and the ginger and Chinese chives
finely chopped... These were all of the "fiddly bits" and the rest was
equally easy as well!

The
pancake was easier still... To make it, I simply added 2 tablespoons of
flour to the egg and a good tablespoon of the finely chopped Chinese
chives.

I
stirred these together until they became a smooth paste, then added a
little fish sauce as seasoning and a little water to thin down the
mixture to the right consistency for a pancake batter.

I added plenty of freshly ground black pepper and set it aside to rest for a few minutes before frying.

And
then I started preparing the spinach, which I washed thoroughly and
allowed to drip-dry a little whilst I began frying the other ingredients
together in a little sesame oil.

Once the shallot had turned translucent, I added the spinach on top and put on the lid for it to steam for 3-4 minutes.

After
2-3 minutes the spinach will have wilted down considerably and you can
stir- fry it nicely, tossing it constantly to get it well and evenly
cooked. Give it another 3-4 minutes and add the shrimp paste and a
little more sesame oil- and you are almost there!

Last
but not least of course, are the bean sprouts, which only need 1-2
minutes of cooking time at the most... You don't want to overdo them and
lose that nice crunch!

Spoon
the spinach and bean sprout mixture on top of your pancake, fold it
shut, add a drizzle of hoisin for seasoning and a sprinkle of toasted
sesame seeds for that finishing touch... And prepare your taste buds for
a treat and yourselves for a pleasant surprise!

About Me

My name is Francesco Strazzanti.
Designer by trade, cook by damnation... a curse and a blessing at the same time.
I dedicate this blog to those of you, who like me, CAN cook, but do not like to cook from a recipe. You and I, we like to pick up ideas and try out our own versions of them, or to re-create great meals we have enjoyed elsewhere. We like the feeling of having done it by ourselves. We don't want to read recipes and feel like we have never cooked before in our lives- we want to see and read and be inspired to do our own thing...
So to all of you people out there like me... and I know you are out there- this blog is for you! Enjoy!
Francesco